Our “dream”

For nine years, as journalists treading the paths of Europe, we came across new faces, experiences, problems and expectations. Correspondents and reporters stream news from across Europe, notably Brussels and Strasbourg. It’s a European information workshop gifted with the possibility of following and relaying the life of European Churches and institutions. A richness that in the working environment is transformed into thoughtfully examined news, in order to highlight remarkable thrust and diversity, which exemplify the living Christian roots of Europe, capable of engendering life and thought. With the belief that in Europe there are not “strong” and “weak” Churches, but rather one single Church whose various local bodies confront challenges pertaining to everyday life along with those related to specific social, cultural and political circumstances. It is a multi-coloured Church enlightened by a single source of light, which takes the shape of a portrait of hope untainted by the passing of time. The Eastern and Western Churches, the Churches of the North and the South, constitute the indelible picture of the cross that conveys the message of eternity to each human person. We tread the paths of Europe with a passion that calls us journalists to perform our task with a high sense of responsibility. Two thoughts accompany our commitment. On March 24 2007 Benedict XVI recalled: “You know that it is your duty, with God’s help, to contribute to the consolidation of a new Europe which will be realistic but not cynical, rich in ideals and free from naïve illusions, inspired by the perennial and life-giving truth of the Gospel”. It’s an invitation to observe Europe through different lenses, as compared to those filtered by Euro-skepticism and haphazardness, which sadly worm their way also into the fabric of the Church. The other thought, in perfect harmony with the previous one, is the one expressed by John Paul II in “Ecclesia in Europa”: “the Catholic Church is convinced that she can make a unique contribution to the prospect of unification. […] From this standpoint, the presence of Christians, properly trained and competent, is needed in the various European agencies and institutions”.The Pope who proclaimed the “Christian roots” and the “two lungs” here tasks the laity with not giving in to concerns for the fragility of the European Union, however realistic these may be. Rather, His Holiness calls for the recovery of political commitment, which as recalled in the Council, is a high and demanding form of charity. It is hoped that the EU will speak with a single voice in support of life in all its stages and circumstances, for peace, justice and solidarity across all corners of the world. In the Middle-East conflicts and in Africa, as in the defence of the environment, in the protection of human rights and in the support to those most severely hit by the economic crisis we would have wanted – and we still hope – to perceive the determination of an adult Europe. Indeed, a long road lies ahead of us and for this very reason Benedict XVI and John Paul II remind the faithful that they must not remain on the margins of history. To be true, during our journey we have come across men and women who are aware of the difficulty and the greatness of this moment, that don’t hesitate to engage in the construction of the European home, conscious that the roof will be placed only when national egoisms and clichés will have been wiped out. We have given voice to individuals aware that a difficult endeavour such as the European one is possible, and hence it is a duty. Our nine-year long journey, as journalists, has been marked by this conviction, by this trepidation. We cherish in our hearts and minds the words pronounced past October in Gdansk by Maria Romana De Gasperi on the occasion of the first Social Days of Europe. Her father wasn’t a dreamer, she pointed out. Rather, he had a “dream”. So it was for Konrad Adenauer, Robert Schuman, Jean Monnet and for all the fathers of the European community. Their “dream” was to have the courage of transforming great dreams into political decisions upon the aftermath of the dreadful tragedy that tore Europe apart. At a more modest level, also we have a “dream”. In reporting on European Churches and Institutions we wish to elicit and promote a European thought that draws inspiration from the thought of the fathers guided by Church magisterium, a Church that is inside history with love.